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Philandering South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford acknowledged he was "dead politically" and shut the door on ever running for political office again once his term ends 16 months from now.

Once considered a leading GOP presidential contender, Sanford admitted defeat in a series of interviews Wednesday. He also copped to trouble coping with living alone since wife Jenny moved out of the governor's mansion with the kids.

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"That part's hard," Sanford said on Columbia's WVOC radio. "But there are consequences for any mess-up that we have in life, and that's one of them. That's probably the most bitter part of it."

The luv gov's troubles began after he absconded to Argentina in June to meet a Latin lover he had been dating secretly for a year -- leaving his state leaderless. Upon returning, the two term governor has battled charges that the cheating was on taxpayers' dime. Sanford has also been accused of taking joyrides on state planes.